Which is Better for Selling the Car?
If you’re considering selling your car to a dealership, check out Carvana first. This company offers an online process where you can get instant offers for your car, unlike local dealerships requiring you to bring your vehicle for inspection.
With Carvana, you have 7 days or an additional 1,000 miles to claim the instant offer. Moreover, you can opt for them to pick up your car if you would rather skip driving to their vending machine. Finally, Carvana offers three payment options.
Carvana Summary
- Get an online quote within 2 minutes
- Free pickup wtihin 100 miles of a hub
- Offer valid for 7 days or 250 more miles
- Haggle-free process to sell your car
Carvana vs. Dealership Comparison
| Carvana | Dealership | |
|---|---|---|
| Cars accepted | In good condition, 1992+ | In good condition |
| Fees | 0 | 0 |
| Requesting quotes | Online application | In-store |
| Offer validity | 7 days or an additional miles up 1,000 | Depends on the dealership |
| Payments offered | Cash or trade-in value | Cash or trade-in value |
| Payout | Check, direct deposit, direct debit | Check |
| Car pick-up | Free pickup or drop off | Drop-off |
| Physical locations | 33 Car Vending Machines | Dealership locations |
| Turnaround time | Up to 72 hours | Up to 48 hours |
| Customer service | Phone, email, online form | Phone |
| Reviews | 2.7 | N/A |
Consider Best Alternatives
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Free, no-obligation cash offers
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Excellent customer service ratings
Honors guaranteed offer for 7 days
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Gives a real offer in 2 minutes
100% hassle-free online process
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Cars Accepted
You can sell your vehicle to Carvana as long as you meet the following conditions:
- Year model of 1992 or newer
- Can safely perform a driving test
- Odometer still working
As for car dealerships, what you can sell typically depends on many factors, such as age, condition, and even their inventory. The best way to determine whether you can sell your car to them is by contacting a dealer near you.
Fees
Selling cars generally doesn’t incur any fees, whether you sell to Carvana or local dealerships in your area.
Requesting Quotes
To sell with Carvana, you can start by requesting a quote online. From their website’s homepage, click the Get an Offer button in the Sell or Trade section. The webpage will then ask for your car’s VIN or license plate number.
After that, you’ll need to describe your vehicle by providing information on its:
- Trim, color, and mileage
- Premium features and accessory packages
- Wheels and tires
- Instrumentation and seats
Your car’s history is also relevant to Carvana, and as you provide this on the online application, make sure to prepare the following documents:
- Photo ID
- Photo of your car’s title
- Odometer reading
If you want to know how much you can sell your car to dealerships, you’ll need to bring in your car for inspection. Typically, dealerships have in-house mechanics that will check the condition of your car. Their sales managers will base their offers on the inspection.
Offer Validity
After receiving an instant offer from Carvana, you can claim it within 7 days. Carvana also considers an additional 1000 miles when you claim an offer.
That means that if you bring in your car within 7 days, and the odometer shows an additional 1,000 or fewer miles, you can still claim the instant offer.
On the contrary, if the odometer shows additional miles higher than 1,000, you’ll need to request another instant offer online.
Compared to Carvana, dealerships have varying offer validity, which, at best, you can find out after getting an offer. Despite that, it’s still worth contacting a local dealership near you to know how long their offers are typically good for.
Payments Offered
Both Carvana and dealerships offer cash or trade-in value for your car. With Carvana, cash payments are paid through a check, direct deposits, or direct debits. Car dealerships, meanwhile, mostly pay in checks.
Payout
Both Carvana and dealerships hand out payments within the same day of selling your vehicle to them.
Car Pick-up
Between Carvana and dealerships, only Carvana offers a free pick-up service. After accepting their instant offer, you can set up the date and time for them to pick up your car.
Physical Locations
Carvana also allows sellers to drop off their vehicles at any of their 33 car vending machines. Dealerships, by default, have physical locations where you can sell your car. To locate them, you can use the “car dealerships near me” keywords on Google.
Turnaround Time
Selling your car to Carvana can take up to 72 hours. Meanwhile, selling to a dealership can take up to 48 hours. In both options, the turnaround time assumes that you have all necessary documents ready when they pick up your car or drop it off at their locations.
To ensure the fastest turnaround time, make sure to get these ready
- Vehicle title and registration
- Insurance documents
- Documents as proof of identity
Customer Service
Carvana’s customer service team is available by phone at 1-800-333-4554, every Monday to Friday, 8 AM to 10 PM EDT and Saturdays, from 9 AM to 9 PM.
When you create and log in to your account, you can also talk to their support team by chat or an online form.
Meanwhile, contacting local dealerships is mostly done by phone. You can typically find their contact numbers when you search for them on Google. Besides the phone number, you can also get their address and operating hours.
Reviews
Carvana has a 2.7 rating at Trustpilot and a 2.6 rating at the Better Business Bureau. Positive reviews on their service are about the quick turnaround time. Some sellers claim to sell their vehicles within 24 hours from the time they requested a quote online.
| Carvana | Dealership | |
|---|---|---|
| Trustpilot | 2.7 | N/A |
| Consumer Affairs | 2.6 | N/A |
On the other hand, some customers have complained about Carvana’s check payments. One customer mentioned receiving a check for an incorrect amount and waiting for Carvana to send the remaining balance.
Customer reviews online for local dealerships, meanwhile, might be hard to find. However, you can still try searching for them through Google, Trustpilot and the Better Business Bureau.
Since these are dealerships near you, it’s also worth asking around. You might know people who have experience selling their cars to a specific dealership you’re considering.